Description: Academy Award-winners Robin Williams and Cuba
Gooding Jr. embark on a supernatural journey beyond the
realm of mortality in this visually stunning and
unforgettable epic. After Chris Nielsen (Williams) dies in
an accident he tries to remain close to his beautiful mortal
wife Annie (Annabella Sciorra). With the friendly spirit
(Gooding Jr.) assigned to guide him he begins to adapt to
his new state of being in a setting that can only be
described as heavenly. But when his distraught wife takes
her own life she is banished to an eternal damnation. Chris
vows to find her so they can share eternity together but no
one has ever succeeded in rescuing a soul from such a
horrific fate. With the help of his heavenly friends Chris
sets out on the most perilous and harrowing journey of his
life or afterlife: a quest for everlasting love that will
take him to hell and back!

***

Despite everything we have experienced and all we have seen,
nothing can prepare us for the wonders of what lies
beyond.... Academy Award¨ Winner Robin Williams is about to
take you on an amazing journey...through heaven and hell. To
rediscover the meaning of life...and the wonders of love.

The Film:

What Dreams May Come has the sensibilities of an art film placed
into a big-budget feature with an A-list cast. Although it is undeniably
a tear-jerker, it's probably not mainstream enough to enthrall audiences
and assure a big return at the box office. It is arguably too offbeat.
The storyline, which has Chris relishing the serenity of heaven before
taking a trip through hell, is compelling, even if the ending is a
little too cute. Part of the reason the movie works is that the
characters are likable. Most of us would love to have the kind of
relationship that Chris and Annie enjoyed, so it's not hard to root for
them to somehow find each other again, even with the chasm of death
dividing them. Also, the production design is truly amazing, coming in
second only to Dark City for the most visually arresting picture of the
year (with the upcoming Pleasantville a close third).

The presence of Max von Sydow immediately conjures up associations with
the work of legendary film maker Ingmar Bergman, and, indeed, there's
something almost Bergman-esque about What Dreams May Come. This film is
about life, death, and the connection between the two - themes that
Bergman explored more than once. Granted, von Sydow was a lot younger
when he appeared in The Seventh Seal, but the link is there. However,
it's worth mentioning that had Bergman made this film, the ending would
not have been as hopelessly crowd-pleasing.

Robin Williams somehow has a quality that makes him seem at home in
imaginary universes. Remember him in ``Popeye,'' ``The Adventures of
Baron Munchausen,'' ``Toys,'' ``Jumanji,'' and in his animated
incarnation in ``Aladdin.'' There is a muscular reality about him,
despite his mercurial wit, that anchors him and makes the fantastic
images around him seem almost plausible. He is good, too, at emotion: He
brings us along with him. In Annabella Sciorra, he has a co-star whose
own character is deeply unhappy and yet touching; her sin of despair was
committed, we believe, because she loved so much and was so happy she
cannot exist in the absence of those feelings.

And yet, as I've suggested, the movie somehow gathers all these threads
and its triumphant art direction and special effects, and then doesn't
get across the finish line with them. I walked out of the theater
sensing that I should have felt more, that an opportunity had been lost.
``What Dreams May Come'' takes us too far and risks too much to turn
conventional at the end. It could have been better. It could perhaps
have been the best film of the year. Whatever its shortcomings, it is a
film to treasure.

Image : NOTE:The below
Blu-ray
captures were taken directly from the
Blu-ray
disc.

What Dreams May Comehas some impressive art
direction and painterly effects that hold up extremely well
via 1080P. This seems to be one of the last of the Universal
HD transfers finally moved to
Blu-ray
and it retains the VC-1 encode but the size outstrips the
capacity of the now defunct format with the feature taking
up over 30 Gig of space on the disc. We've all seen colors
on the
Blu-ray
format that go overboard with saturation, and while this is
part of the effects of the fantasy sequences of What Dreams May
Come
- it never extends beyond its balance and for that I am
appreciative and the image quality benefits from this
restraint. I guess what I am trying to say is that the
effect colors don't look enhanced for this release. This
is dual-layered, clean, bright and contrast exhibits healthy, rich
black levels. This is a beautiful film that often has me
thinking of Kurosawa's
Dreams. The Universal transfer is quite strong and
offers a memorable presentation in this format.

CLICK EACH BLU-RAY
CAPTURE TO SEE ALL IMAGES IN FULL 1920X1080 RESOLUTION

Audio :

Solid lossless
track - a DTS-HD Master 5.1 at 3134 kbps covers all the bases well with
effect noises sounding springy or buoyantly separated depending on the
intent. I'm always keen on the subtleties and they exist here in harmony
with the more boisterous sound-staging.

Dialogue is not an abundant part with vibrant, visuals taking the lead
but everything is in place here and sounds as close to flawless as I
could ascertain. There are optional subtitles and my Momitsu
has identified
it as being a region FREE disc playable on
Blu-ray
machines worldwide.

Extras :

Everything is
from the past DVD and HD editions with the commentary with director
Vincent Ward, a 6.5 minute alternate ending, the standard featurette:
What Dreams May Come for 15-minutes with cast and crew giving
soundbytes. There is also a 'Visual Effects' section with separate, very
short, interviews with Joel Hynek (visual effects supervisor: Mass.
Illusions) and Josh Rosen (visual effects art director), plus two
trailers although nothing is in HD. We lose the photo gallery that was
present on past digital editions. So, nothing new but the commentary
will be appreciated by those who indulge.

BOTTOM LINE: This is a pretty cool movie on lots of fronts. The extravagant
visuals mesh well with the story to create a rare fantasy
hybrid - that we don't often see anymore. Fans of the film
will be happy to see it on
Blu-ray looking occasionally breathtaking. Audio is likewise competent and
even if we get no new extras - it is still a worthwhile film
to own in this format - certainly capable of 'demo' purposes
for certain crowds. Recommended!

Gary Tooze

April 25th, 2011

About the Reviewer:
Hello, fellow Beavers! I have been interested in film
since I viewed a Chaplin festival on PBS when I was
around 9 years old. I credit DVD with expanding my
horizons to fill an almost ravenous desire to seek out
new film experiences. I currently own approximately 9500
DVDs and have reviewed over 3500 myself. I appreciate my
discussion Listserv for furthering my film
education and inspiring me to continue running DVDBeaver.
Plus a healthy thanks to those who donate and use our
Amazon links.

Although I never wanted to become one of those guys who
focused 'too much' on image and sound quality - I
find HD is swiftly pushing me in that direction.